---
title: "Living in Beijing as a digital nomad: cost, safety, visa, internet"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/beijing
description: "China's capital: imperial history on a vast scale"
dataset: 2026.10.7 (2026-10-13)
license: CC BY 4.0
---

# Beijing, China

Beijing scores 53.7/100 for digital nomads under balanced weights, ranking 799 of 1000 cities. Expect about $1,947 per month, no dedicated nomad visa, and a measured median download speed of 29.7 Mbps.

Beijing has one of the world's largest metro systems and world-class history, but it is a hard base for remote work: Google, Slack and most Western tools need a VPN, and daily payments run on Alipay and WeChat Pay. Citizens of dozens of countries, though not the US, can now enter visa-free for up to 30 days, which suits a short stay better than a long one. Air quality has improved sharply since 2013 but winter smog still occurs.

Known for: Forbidden City and the Great Wall, One of the world's largest metros, Blocked Western internet services, Cold, dry winters.

## Scores (balanced weights, 0–100)

| Factor | Score |
| --- | --- |
| Overall | 53.7 |
| Cost of living | 34 |
| Safety | 76 |
| Healthcare | 81 |
| Internet | 65 |
| Visa ease | 15 |
| Getting there & around | 83 |
| Climate | 33 |
| Air quality | 42 |
| Quality of life | 55 |

## The numbers behind the scores

| Metric | Value | Level | As of | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | $1,947 | city | 2026-09 | [^2] |
| Central 1-bedroom rent | $1,085 | city | 2026-09 | [^2] |
| Outskirts 1-bedroom rent (basis of the monthly total) | $568 | city | 2026-09 | [^2] |
| Homicide rate (per 100k) | 0.5 | country | 2020 | [^4] |
| Political stability (0–100) | 66 | country | 2025 | [^5] |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 85 | country | 2023 | [^6] |
| Life expectancy (years) | 77.6 | country | 2021 | [^7] |
| Median download (Mbps) | 29.7 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Median upload (Mbps) | 9.9 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Starlink residential service | Not offered | country | 2026-10 | [^9] |
| Nomad visa | none listed | country | 2026-07 | [^10] |
| Entry for US / EU / UK passports | visa required / 30 days / visa required | country | 2026-10 | [^11] |
| Non-stop destinations (PEK/PKX) | 204 | city | 2014 | [^13] |
| Restaurants within 3 km of the centre (OpenStreetMap) | 304 | city | 2026-10 | [^17] |
| Walkability / transit (1–5) | 3 / 5 | editorial | 2026-09 | [^14] |
| Comfortable months | 4 of 12 | city | 2001–2020 | [^15] |
| Annual mean PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 31 | city | 2024 | [^16] |
| Human Development Index | 0.797 | country | 2023 | [^18] |
| English proficiency band | low | country | 2024 | [^19] |

## Climate (2001–2020 normals)

| Month | Mean °C | Rain mm | Humidity % | Comfortable |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jan | -5.2 | 2 | 51 | no |
| Feb | -1.8 | 6 | 49 | no |
| Mar | 5.1 | 9 | 42 | no |
| Apr | 13.2 | 24 | 39 | no |
| May | 20.5 | 38 | 39 | yes |
| Jun | 24.8 | 84 | 52 | yes |
| Jul | 26.6 | 151 | 64 | no |
| Aug | 25 | 109 | 67 | yes |
| Sep | 19.8 | 64 | 60 | yes |
| Oct | 11.9 | 30 | 57 | no |
| Nov | 2.9 | 14 | 55 | no |
| Dec | -4 | 2 | 53 | no |

## Airports and nonstop flights

| Airport | IATA | Nonstop destinations | International | From US airports |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Beijing Capital International Airport | PEK | 204 | 94 | 10 |
| Beijing Daxing International Airport | PKX | 0 | 0 | 0 |

Unique destinations across all airports: 204, of which 94 international (OpenFlights 2014 snapshot).

## Similar cities

- [Suzhou](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/suzhou) (52.7) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/beijing-vs-suzhou)
- [Hangzhou](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/hangzhou) (53.5) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/beijing-vs-hangzhou)
- [Shanghai](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/shanghai) (54.8) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/beijing-vs-shanghai)
- [Chongqing](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/chongqing) (51.7) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/beijing-vs-chongqing)
- [Nanjing](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/nanjing) (52.5) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/beijing-vs-nanjing)

## FAQ

### How much does it cost to live in Beijing as a digital nomad?

A single person typically spends about $1,947 per month in Beijing, renting a one-bedroom outside the centre (about $568). A central one-bedroom costs about $1,085, which brings the total to roughly $2,464. That is a 34/100 cost score, where 100 is the cheapest city in the dataset.

### Is Beijing safe for digital nomads?

Beijing scores 76/100 on safety. China records 0.5 homicides per 100,000 people per year (WHO, 2020) and a political-stability score of 66/100 (World Bank WGI). Both figures are national, so neighbourhood-level risk can differ.

### Does China have a digital nomad visa?

No dedicated digital nomad visa was listed for China as of 2026-07. Visitors from the US need a visa from a consulate.

### How fast is the internet in Beijing?

Measured median download speed in Beijing was 29.7 Mbps (upload 9.9 Mbps) across 2,798 M-Lab tests in 2024. Measured speeds run below advertised plan speeds everywhere, so compare cities rather than reading the number as a plan.

### Is Starlink available in Beijing?

No. Starlink does not offer service in China according to its availability map (2026-10), and bringing a terminal may break local rules.

### Which airports serve Beijing and how many nonstop flights are there?

Beijing is served by Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) with 204 nonstop destinations and Beijing Daxing International Airport (PKX) with 0 nonstop destinations, 204 unique destinations across all of them, of which 94 are international. 10 US airports have a nonstop link. Source: OpenFlights 2014 snapshot.

### When is the best time of year to be in Beijing?

The most comfortable months are May, Jun, Aug, Sep. Mean temperatures range from 23°F (-5°C) in Jan to 80°F (27°C) in Jul (NASA POWER 2001–2020 climatology).

### Beijing or Suzhou: which is better for digital nomads?

Suzhou is the city with the closest factor profile to Beijing in this dataset. Which one wins depends on your weights; the comparison page puts every factor side by side with the numbers behind them.

## Plan a trip

[Where to stay in Beijing](https://navoy.io/hotels/china/beijing) on Navoy, the AI travel planner behind Nostos.

## Sources

[^1]: City population (latest census or official estimate), Wikipedia (citing national statistics offices). CC BY-SA 4.0. https://en.wikipedia.org/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^2]: WhereNext city cost estimates 2026 (city pages), WhereNext. CC BY 4.0. https://getwherenext.com/cities (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^3]: 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level), WhereNext. CC BY 4.0. https://getwherenext.com/data/cost-of-living-2026 (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^4]: Victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population (national data, latest year), United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, dataUNODC. UNODC data, free to reuse with attribution. https://data.unodc.org/datareport/hom-victim (retrieved 2026-10-12)
[^5]: Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100), World Bank. CC BY 4.0. https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^6]: UHC service coverage index, World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory. CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO data policy). https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/indicators/indicator-details/GHO/uhc-index-of-service-coverage (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^7]: Life expectancy at birth (years), both sexes, World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory. CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO data policy). https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/indicators/indicator-details/GHO/life-expectancy-at-birth-(years) (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^8]: M-Lab NDT statistics (city aggregates, 2024), Measurement Lab. CC0 1.0. https://statistics.measurementlab.net/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^9]: Starlink availability map, SpaceX (Starlink). Factual status cited from starlink.com. https://www.starlink.com/map (retrieved 2026-10-07)
[^10]: Digital Nomad Visas 2026, WhereToEmigrate. CC BY 4.0. https://github.com/0brien18/global-emigration-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^11]: Official entry rules that changed after the Passport Index snapshot, National governments (immigration authorities, foreign ministries, embassies), compiled by Navoy. Facts from public government pages. https://nostos.navoy.io/data (retrieved 2026-10-07)
[^12]: Passport Index dataset (visa requirements, 199 passports × 199 destinations), Ilya Ilyankou (compiled from passportindex.org). MIT. https://github.com/ilyankou/passport-index-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^13]: OpenFlights airports and routes, OpenFlights.org. ODbL 1.0. https://openflights.org/data (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^14]: Walkability and transit ratings (editorial), Navoy. CC BY 4.0. https://nostos.navoy.io/methodology (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^15]: NASA POWER climatology (2001–2020 monthly means), NASA Langley Research Center. Public domain (US Government). https://power.larc.nasa.gov/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^16]: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database, June 2026 update (V8), World Health Organization. CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO data policy). https://www.who.int/publications/m/item/who-ambient-air-quality-database-(update-jun-2026) (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^17]: OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API), OpenStreetMap contributors. ODbL 1.0. https://overpass-api.de/ (retrieved 2026-10-02)
[^18]: Human Development Index (HDR 2025, HDI 2023), United Nations Development Programme. CC BY 3.0 IGO. https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/documentation-and-downloads (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^19]: EF English Proficiency Index 2024 (band), EF Education First. Proprietary; band cited as a fact with attribution. https://www.ef.com/epi/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)

HTML page: https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/beijing